In the news

According to the CDC latest report, the tally of people that got infected with the outbreak strain of E. coli O157:H7 stands at from 32 states. Since the last update by CDC 23 people from 13 states were added. Of 157 people with information available, 75 (48%) have been hospitalized, including 20 people who developed HUS. One death was reported from California. The FDA reported that the last shipment of romaine lettuce from Yuma AZ was harvested on April 16, 2018. Since the shelf life of the product is 21 days, it is unlikely that any romaine lettuce from Yuma is still available. The most recent illnesses reported to CDC started when romaine lettuce from the Yuma growing region was likely still available in stores, restaurants, and in peoples’ homes. It is interesting to mention that the romaine lettuce was never recalled. @ https://www.cdc.gov/ecoli/2018/o157h7-04-18/index.html

French food retailer Leclerc recalled Reblochon products, produced from raw milk, by cheesemaker Chabert. The recall includes Reblochon made at the production facility in the French Alps and sold by various retailers, including Carrefour and Intermarché. The recall in France involves about 350 tons of cheese. The cheese was recalled after seven children in France have been confirmed with E. coli O26 infections linked to the recalled cheese. Six have developed hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS). The outbreak in France has prompted Canadian officials to initiate a recall of imported Reblochon cheese. @ https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-cheese-ecoli/france-extends-cheese-recall-after-e-coli-cases-in-children-idUSKCN1IF23Y

An intriguing piece by Shawn Stevens
To date this year, approximately 20,000,000 pounds of packaged food products have been recalled for the presence of pathogens. This number does not include the nearly 20,000,000 pounds of eggs that have been pulled off store shelves as a result of the recent egg recall, or the millions of pounds of romaine lettuce that is no longer being processed, purchased or plated as a result of the ongoing E. coli O157:H7 outbreak. Could more testing have prevented these products from making it into consumer’s homes? The logical answer is yes, more testing would likely have identified many, if not virtually all, of these issues. With that said, I also know from experience that many naysayers will argue that you can “never test to zero,” and more testing “is worthless” and “a waste of money and time.” Well, perhaps, given the massive amount of product recalled so far this year, that attitude is the root cause of the problem. @ http://www.meatingplace.com/Industry/Blogs/Details/79599

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today announced the appointment of 18 new members and 12 returning members to the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF). “Food safety and ensuring public health continue to be at the forefront of USDA’s mission,” said Perdue. “The committee members represent a diverse group from academia, consumers, the food industry, laboratories, consultants, and government agencies all of which play an important role in providing scientific advice and expertise to USDA on food safety and wholesomeness.” NACMCF is a discretionary advisory committee that provides impartial scientific advice and peer reviews to food safety agencies on public health issues related to the safety and wholesomeness of domestic, imported and exported foods. @ https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2018/05/14/secretary-perdue-appoints-new-members-national-advisory-committee